S06:E07 - Newbie Dash

[Pinky_Music 64]

Yeah, I like the idea of her using the name as a badge of honor to spite the bullies, but at the same time the episode really should've addressed the baggage behind the name, and maybe add in some emotional punch, something this episode really could've used

 

This right there. When I first watched the episode, I wasn't liking it at all, perhaps because I was reminded of a less than stellar childhood I had.

 

Later, after I read a couple more reviews to give me some additional perspective, I watched the episode a couple of more times to see if my opinion changed. I didn't mind the name calling, as it was right that they weren't trying to degrade her by repeatedly saying "Rainbow Crash" like the bullies did. At the end of the episode where they were revealing their nicknames, it made more sense after watching again.

 

I feel that maybe if they called a few of the other Wonderbolts by their nicknames, it wouldn't have been as jarring to me. I also agree that it might have been better addressing the baggage she associates with the name, but how could the Wonderbolts have known about and addressed the cause of her poor flying if she didn't communicate about it?

 

At first, I was going to give this episode a 2/10 for me, but because I did the above and watched it again, I give it now more of an 8/10.

 

I still kinda cringe at her imitations of the mane six, though.

 

Name calling, however, can still be really scarring and hard to recover from, and I have personal experience in that, to the point that I was lashing out at almost everyone for no real reason, but it was enough for my parents to step in (but that is a discussion for another place and time).

[Music Chart Fan 818]

There's nothing misleading or hyperbolic about it. People young and old have been scarred from hazing, killed from hazing, and driven to suicide from hazing. Attaching an insult and hammering it in when Dash was visibly uncomfortable with it and wasn't in on it is hazing. These "good-fun" rituals from the physical abuse like being beaten to the mental like taunts can psychologically damage a person. This episode's moral actively defends hazing of all kinds.

 

And the fact that this show is supposed to teach morals to kids makes it an even bigger deal. Kids are smart, but also impressionable by what they see and hear around them. Being taught a dangerous moral can AND WILL paint major falsehoods on aspects of life, and teaching kids hazing is okay reopens that trauma trigger effect to some of those affected by hazing.

I think your response here mostly doesn't address the narrower point I was trying to make. Do you believe that name-calling and verbally picking on someone, such as what happened to Rainbow Dash in this episode, is morally equivalent to killing, raping, or physically injuring someone? Do you advocate for name-calling and verbally picking on someone, such as what happened to Rainbow Dash in this episode, to receive the same legal punishment as, e.g., manslaughter, rape, or assault?

 

From your previous posts, my understanding is that you would answer "yes" to both of these questions. However, I (and, I suspect, others) am not convinced of either case.

[poniesrfun 469]

Loved this episode , it was so funny when RD was taking off her 5 other pony friends personalities in the camp ,

[Sals 56]

It was pretty good but I felt some cringe each time they said crash and since when did they start using nicknames?

[Moon Sugar 532]

Seeing Rainbow Dash pretend to be other ponies was pretty fun, but it was a Rainbow Dash episode and they don't rank very high on my list.

[Blackshirt Brony 415]

I did not like this episode. The whole thing was a bit cringeworthy, to the point where I found the episode difficult to watch. Also, the "resolution" to the conflict seemed too abrupt and made little sense in the context of the rest of the story.

 

The only credit I give this episode is for continuity, insofar as Rainbow Dash is still training to become a Wonderbolt.

[dekutree64 711]

That was unpleasant to watch. I feel so bad for Rainbow. After all her hard work and dreams of being a Wonderbolt, they seem to be a bunch of jerks once you get to know them. I'd hoped we'd finally get a Wonderbolt episode where they work as a team to solve a problem together, but instead it's just them against Dash again. Seriously, she should either use her rank as a national hero to take over and reform the group into something worthy of respect, or ditch them and form her own crew. Maybe get in touch with Luna about those Shadow Bolts from episode 2

[Emiko Gale 199]

I enjoyed this episode much more than I thought I would even if I tend to not like Rainbow Dash centric episodes...Well ok, I like a handful but I tend to dislike the episodes with her and the wonderbolts.

 

However...The ending...I honestly felt like the wonderbolts should've apologized to Dash, that was traumatizing to her and it's not like the other bolts got called by their endearing "nicknames."

 

I feel Rainbow Dash may choose to leave them eventually....Please do...Your friends are so much better than the bolts and that episode proved it.

 

This episode along with Rarity Investigates is also making me ship Rarity and Dash a bit too. >.>

[Sh Pie 65]

I was disappointed with this episode. Rainbow Dash was immature. Firstly, she ignored rule #1. In real life, "look both ways before crossing the street" is essentially this rule and it was suggested to prevent injuries. Spitfire made it very clear to look both ways and Rainbow Dash deserved to fall in the trash. Secondly, Spike called her Rainbow Crash in Season 1 episode 9 and she didn't retaliate so where the hay did that backstory come from? Anyway, getting angry about nicknames is ridiculous. Real names hurt way worse. Rainbow Dash had the opportunity to fly with the Wonderbolts and she screwed up with her sudden inferiority complex. If she really sucked, she wouldn't be wearing that uniform.

 

Pinkie was great though! The cotton candy scene and Rainbow Trash pun were awesome moments that prevented this episode from being irredeemably bad like Season 3 episode 9 and Season 5 episode 11.

[Soren Vigil 2]

Newbie Dash is a hard episode for me to watch. On one hand it has Rainbow Dash finally fulfil her dreams of being a fully fledged Wonderbolt but sadly has said Wonderbolts harshly treat Rainbow Dash yet again. I understand what the writers had intended; they wanted to bring her back down to earth and show her that being a great flier doesn't mean she doesn't have a lot left to learn but maybe they could've done so without the Wonderbolts coming of as badly as they did. However, I won't say that Rainbow Dash's response was just either. She disobeyed the rules that they set in place and did overreact a bit. Luckily it had some nice comedy and visuals to ease the disagreeable aspects of the writing. 

Edited May 16, 2016 by Soren Vigil

[Brightbart 268]

Definitely my least favorite episode of the season. I don't enjoy the episodes that portray Rainbow Dash as immature and bratty. Yeah the Wondercolts could've eased up on her but every cringe-worthy moment that happened was RD's fault. Hopefully one day, an episode will cure RD of her insecurity issues since she able to dish out criticism but can't handle being on the receiving end. 

[Emiko Gale 199]

Secondly, Spike called her Rainbow Crash in Season 1 episode 9 and she didn't retaliate so where the hay did that backstory come from?

 

To be honest...I think the reason suddenly Rainbow Dash has insecurity problems in this episode...Speaking from experience...To be talked down by somepony you look up to can really hurt a pony's self-esteem.

 

Hmmm...I never thought I could relate to Dash...Maybe I should give her more credit...Since I originally felt she was overrated because of overexposure.

[powerpuff-tsubasa 447]

cringeworthy and unworthy

Definitely my least favorite episode of the season. I don't enjoy the episodes that portray Rainbow Dash as immature and bratty. Yeah the Wondercolts could've eased up on her but every cringe-worthy moment that happened was RD's fault. Hopefully one day, an episode will cure RD of her insecurity issues since she able to dish out criticism but can't handle being on the receiving end.

*sigh* thats soo true. dashie tries too hard to have wonderbolts like her. its sickening

[Dark Qiviut 22,172]

@@Music Chart Fan, You're not understanding my point. Yes, manslaughter, assault, and rape are worse than name-calling, but that doesn't take away from the psychological damage that insults carry. My point is that hazing altogether isn't okay, because lives are either damaged or ended by it, from the physical to the psychological. An "in-good-fun" insult to the receiver can be enough to trigger suicidal thoughts and perhaps act on it. Words can hurt, and words can kill.

Edited May 17, 2016 by Dark Qiviut

[CT-1138 3,180]

Rainbow Dash isn't going to off herself over some innocent nicknames and barracks scrubbing. She's a stronger person than that. I think you're severely blowing this out of proportion. It's not like they wrote "slut" on her forehead and paraded her around the barracks. They made light of an embarrassing accident. Nobody kills themselves for people joking about when they fall in a garbage can.

[Dark Qiviut 22,172]

Rainbow Dash isn't going to off herself over some innocent nicknames and barracks scrubbing.

It makes total sense for her to feel hurt by the insult. She's a very sensitive character with a whole lot of pride, so it makes a bunch of sense for her to feel hurt. Why? Because to her, she wasn't in on it, and being called "Rainbow Crash" comes off as an attack; so them hammering it only makes it worse.

 

I think you're severely blowing this out of proportion.

You don't understand the implications of hazing. Dash has every right not to accept or tolerate a culture she wants no part of. Just because they don't see it as an attack doesn't mean the recipient won't. IRL, insults (yes, including "in-good-fun" verbal hazing) are enough to cause people to go over the edge. Words are weapons, and we should be aware of it, not sweep it aside.

Edited May 17, 2016 by Dark Qiviut

[CT-1138 3,180]

If you seriously cannot differentiate between insults meant to hurt, and harmless camaraderie, then I'm sorry I can't help you. You're making a bigger stink out of harmless banter than it needed to be, and this is one of the most ridiculous examples of PC culture I've ever seen. 

[Dark Qiviut 22,172]

If you seriously cannot differentiate between insults meant to hurt, and harmless camaraderie, then I'm sorry I can't help you.

There's nothing harmless about what the Wonderbolts did, and there's nothing harmless about hazing, period. The WB didn't lead Dash in on the joke, and she has every right to feel upset. People have been psychologically injured, killed, and/or driven to suicide by hazing, and this episode tells the audience hazing is okay as long as it's in "good fun." It's not.

 

and this is one of the most ridiculous examples of PC culture I've ever seen.

Hazing is a very big problem that we should be aware of and not treat any form of it as okay, not sweep it underneath blatant buzzwords like "political correctness." Thanks to people and/or their families telling their experiences of hazing to the media, we as a society have become more and more aware of its inherent vileness. I've been aware of how terrible hazing is for nearly ten years now, and the more I read about it, the more disgusting it is. No show should ever spin it positively; Newbie Dash does.

Edited May 17, 2016 by Dark Qiviut

[CT-1138 3,180]

Dude, you are severely blowing out of proportion. Like... seriously. Wow. I can't even anymore. They didn't realize she didn't understand it until the end. At which point they readily explained what was going on. It was purely harmless. 

Edited May 17, 2016 by Dinos4Ever

[Dark Qiviut 22,172]

 

 

Dude, you are severely blowing out of proportion. Like... seriously.

Once more, there's nothing blown out of proportion about it. There are real-life implications attached to the moral, and the fact that this show is supposed to teach lessons to kids is more than enough for me to take this seriously.

 

 

 

They didn't realize she didn't understand it until the end. At which point they readily explained what was going on. It was purely harmless.

"They didn't realize" makes the Wonderbolts more culpable for their actions, not less. It's their responsibility to tell Dash ahead of time about the culture and what to expect if she screws up. And again, just because the Wonderbolts perceived their action as harmless doesn't mean Rainbow Dash sees it nor should she put up with it. No one is entitled not to feel emotionally hurt. She was and had every right to be.

[CT-1138 3,180]

Okay, I'm going lay this out as flatly as possible. 

 

Friendly banter is not the same as malicious insults. 

 

Scrubbing barracks is not the same as being singled out and tormented. 

 

Anybody who thinks these things are equivalent of each other needs a reassessment of their lives. There is a distinct difference between malicious and benevolent behavior. 

[Dark Qiviut 22,172]

Friendly banter is not the same as malicious insults.

And once more, just because the people who deliver them see it as "friendly banter" doesn't mean the person who receives it sees it. And just because it's "friendly banter" doesn't mean the people who receive it shouldn't feel hurt. You can't teach hurt feelings, and no one has the right to not feel upset by something. Newbie Dash handwaved the consequences aside, and that's a terrible lesson to kids.

Edited May 17, 2016 by Dark Qiviut

[Fjdhebekd 11]

I loved this episode! Why is it so contriversal?

[powerpuff-tsubasa 447]

The only credit I give this episode is for continuity, insofar as Rainbow Dash is still training to become a Wonderbolt.

I agree. although i will pay respects to dashie who's sorely trying to achieve her flying goals

[weesh 690]

Dude, you are severely blowing out of proportion. Like... seriously. Wow. I can't even anymore. They didn't realize she didn't understand it until the end. At which point they readily explained what was going on. It was purely harmless. 

 

he isn't blowing it out of proportion, but you seem to be ignorant of the harm caused by this sort of behavior.  people who are hazed have detrimental effects on their self esteem, and some commit suicide.  I can't understand how you think "rainbow dash is stronger than that", when she clearly melted down after ONE day of the abuse.